Rising Stars 2017

Susan is an electrical and mechanical engineer, passionate about promoting engineering and energy careers.

Susan worked at National Grid for six years. She was responsible for maintaining National Grid’s relationship with the energy regulator relating to a ~£1bn new electricity transmission project. Her work facilitated new low carbon projects to help meet increasing UK energy demand in a sustainable way.

In November 2016, Susan joined Deloitte’s Infrastructure & Capital Projects Consulting team. As a Senior Consultant, Susan specialises in the design and setup of delivery models and control for capital projects and complex transformation programmes across the energy and resources industry. Susan was recently responsible for evaluating a UK water utility’s asset maintenance end-to-end process and capabilities.

Susan holds a Master of Engineering (M.Eng) in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering with Distinction from the University of Strathclyde. Susan is currently the Chair of the UK Young Energy Professionals Forum which has over 1,300 members. She is an ambassador for the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Queen Elizabeth Prize to help promote engineering globally. In 2015, Susan won the EY and Energy UK Young Energy Professional of the Year Award, and in 2016 was shortlisted in WeAreTheCity’s Rising Star Awards Top 10 for Diversity.

Mary is a Registered General Nurse,Theatre and Anaesthestic Practitioner with qualifications and experience in Management. She is currently practising as a Specialist Practitioner in Minimally Invasive Surgery,which includes single incision and robotically assisted surgery.She works with innovative thought leaders and have been at the fore front of building this specialty to a world renowned,training and master class centre for Nurses,Surgeons and Allied Health Practitioners. She have succesfully devised Induction and orientation programs as part of recruitment and retention initiative for the Trust as a centre of excellence with diverse work force. She is also a Nurse Consultant with special interest in Capacity building,training and mentoring for Transforming Healthcare

I am a control room manager, chartered engineer, and a proactive promoter of engineering because I believe that engineers have the power to change lives and improve the world.

After gaining a Master’s degree in chemical engineering in 2010, I joined E.ON’s Engineering and Leadership graduate scheme. This was a fascinating journey in the energy sector; from coal and gas fired power stations in the UK, to business expansion in Turkey, to Oil and Gas operations in the UK’s North Sea.

My continued passion for energy has led me to the world of distributed energy generation. I am currently the control room manager for E.ON’s Community Energy business, responsible for delivering safe, reliable heat supply to over 20,000 customers and creating value from electricity generation assets.

Alongside my day job, I am a regular public speaker, an active member of the Institution of Chemical Engineers, a news presenter for the Institution of Engineering and Technology, and a board member on the Women’s Engineering Society Young Members’ Board.

Keen to communicate engineering, I am constantly searching for new ways to reach wider audiences. I was selected as one of the BBC’s Expert Voices in 2014, and awarded a British Science Association Media Fellowship in 2015, which allowed me to spend time working for the BBC science unit.

I have featured in various promotional engineering campaigns, written blogs, appeared on television and radio, and even performed engineering themed stand-up comedy!

As a Design Manager, I specialise in managing multi-disciplinary design teams on major infrastructure projects. I have worked on a number of high profile projects, including the £790m London Bridge Station Redevelopment project, the Paddington Cube and HS2 Euston Station.

My strong drive, goal orientation and leadership skills have empowered me to be a significant leading role model for women in both the rail and construction industries. Through my passion for sustainable positive change and my numerous positions on Industry Committees, I champion initiatives to encourage young people into engineering.

I was one of the founders of the independent charity Cameroon Catalyst and am determined to help facilitate sustainable development in rural Cameroon.

In 2015, I was awarded an MBE in recognition for “Services to civil engineering and international charity work."

As a child, Dr. Patrice Baptiste always dreamt of qualifying as a medical doctor. After years of hard work, continued dedication and perseverance she qualified in 2013 from University College London (UCL).

Due to the challenges surmounted trying to achieve her dream, Dr. Baptiste uses her experiences to show others that a dream is never too big, or unattainable. Through sharing her story she aims to inspire, empower, support and encourage as many people as possible.

Alongside Dr. Baptiste’s full time duties as a doctor she regularly contributes to GP Online, an online magazine for doctors. For two years she has served as a Director Appointee and now volunteers her time as a Foundation Governor. Patrice is the founder of DreamSmartTutors, an organization that not only aims to help students successfully apply to medical school but also educates and informs them about life as a doctor. This is through a number of courses and personalized one-to-one tuition. The focus is especially, but not exclusively for students from disadvantaged and Black Minority and Ethnic (BME) backgrounds. Patrice is also a STEM ambassador, a School Speaker and a member of UCL's BME alumni committee.

Patrice uses her skills as a writer, experiences as a doctor and abilities to engage with young people to raise awareness of important issues in addition to educating and informing others, especially the next generation of future professionals.

I am Rachael, aged 41, and mum to a beautiful 4 week old (a position I never thought I would be in). I also currently wok for Roche Products Ltd as a contracts manager in Pharma Research and Early Development.

In 2012 – my life changed for ever. I found the lump the previous November, but waited until after Christmas before going to the doctor. On 16 February 2012, aged 36, I was told I had breast cancer.

Once you’ve been diagnosed, your world is turned upside down. You live from appointment to appointment and you can’t plan anything, which was a tough. But I decided to try and keep some sense of normality / control – for me that meant working through my treatment. I was triple positive so would need chemo, surgery, Herceptin, radiotherapy and hormone therapy.

One of the hardest parts of the cancer was friends. We generally assume that our friends will be supportive in a crisis, but after cancer, we learn this may or may not be true. Its amazing how many people run for the hills when they hear the word cancer, and other friends (who I really saw as acquaintances) totally stepped up. I might be bald with no eyelashes and look a sight – but I was still me!
It was after treatment had finished that things really started to hit me. Having time to process everything and the emotional upheaval afterwards was huge. I had no idea how I was going to put the fragmented jigsaw that was my life back together.

Fast forward to now. I’m back at work full time. My main focus outside of work is Younger Breast Cancer Network UK - a peer support network for younger women with breast cancer. It has had no funding and started from grass roots. We now have 3000 members and work regularly with charities such as Breast Cancer Now and Breast Cancer Care. The group is a lifeline to many - just ask our members. Find us at @YBCN_UK.

Selina joined Hermes Investment Management in October 2012 and is responsible for representing Hermes and promoting their diverse fund range to the UK & Irish discretionary and wholesale market, including GFIs. Prior to joining Hermes, she worked at Man Group since February 2008, covering Global Banking Relationships. Selina has over 14 years experience within financial services, fulfilling client service, relationship management and sales roles. She is a holder of the Investment Management Certificate.

I am an experienced Admin Manager and PA with vast experience in the sales industry. I am passionate about the development and recognition of the support role and have put this passion into co-founding NESS-The Essex PA Network. Networking and arranging events for NESS allows me to develop my own skills and help those around me to do the same.

From networking, I have taken on a different role at Hays as Contractor Relationship Manager. This means I am responsible for contractor care – meeting, assisting and being a problem solver for the contractors in my remit. I believe that networking gave me a superb grounding and training to commit to this role with confidence.

In my spare time I am a volunteer Sales Manager for the Hamelin Trust charity. Each Saturday I work in the shop unpacking donations, sorting, moving furniture and serving the public. I absolutely recommend volunteering to anyone – it’s really hard work but the feeling of achievement at the end of the day outweighs this.

I am friendly and approachable and I believe in paying it forward to help others achieve and realise their potential.

After two years in private wealth management, Kate joined Bloomberg in New York into their Analytics department. She spent three years as a Team Leader in the Analytics department in New York and then in London, where she ran New Starter training and was selected for a secondment in Recruitment to help hit hiring targets. She then moved to the Sales department where she covers Buyside accounts in Ireland and has helped mentor new Sales representatives along with running the Spring Insights Internship for first year university students. Kate is active in recruitment efforts both in London and Dublin which aim to target female students interested in finance.

Kate graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in International Relations and Economics from CW Post University in New York. She also had the opportunity to complete a semester abroad at Dauphine University in Paris.

Outside of Bloomberg, Kate is a member of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in New York where she volunteered at events to raise awareness about the disease and fundraises for the annual MS Bike Ride each year. She is an avid runner and recent health food nut, although is a closet cheese-fanatic.

I’m Sara, Head of Reseller Sales at Brother UK. I am currently in my 19th year with BUK having been promoted through the business in various departments including Customer Service, Marketing and for the last 5 years Sales. With a strong work ethic inherited from my mum, every day is about delivering the right level of support to my team and customers. The last few years have been investing time in developing my confidence and management skills as my current/future ambitions are to have a successful team of individuals, developing and guiding them into being the best they can be, I am motivated by seeing people grow and succeed in their roles.

I’m someone with a desire to get the job done and do it well and exceed people’s expectations, although this has sometimes impacted on my work/life balance. I am now totally clear on the importance of getting this right and look to ensure that the team around me are getting this right too. My role is all about people and I enjoy networking and sharing experiences, building up relationships which is essential in Sales.

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